Pats trade

[sbtatter]

They just said they're going to announce a Pats trade in the first intermission...

[sbtatter]

The Regina Pats have acquired RW J.D. Watt, 20, from the Red Deer Rebels in a four-player trade made New Year’s Day. Regina gets Watt, RW Scott Doucet, 19, and a fourth-round pick in the 2009 bantam draft for C Cody Gross, 18, RW Brett Miller, 16, and a third-round pick in the 2009 bantam draft.

[hobster]

Wow did they ever just better there team

[sbtatter]

Wow did they ever just better there team
This season!! Helps us all against them next year though!!

[rinkrat]

Wow did they ever just better there team

Time for the Pats to work on the penalty kill. :thumb:

[patsdude114]

Love this deal, JD Watt can be a top forward in this league scored 34 goals last season with a defencesive minded Giants team along with 184 mins. This guy can hit, score, and brings a much needed toughness to this team. Should give Eberle alittle more space on the ice especially if Hunt/Perkins puts Watt on a line with Kraus and Eberle.

As for Doucet hes a soild speedy forward with some decent size, I remember him mostly when he played for the Raiders. Is a consistant player competes hard and has some finish maybe playing alittle different role can help Doucet out.

At todays game me and my dad were talking with Ofukanys billets and he has requested a trade, he no longer wants to be on this pats team. GUess that shows from his play in recent weeks.

I think Parker will be making 2 more deals maybe not of big name player as Watt is but maybe could swap 20 yr old with a west team and send a draft pick as well (a 4th or 5th rounder) I really hope somehow Parker could get Gardner out of PG i think he is what we need especially if were going to loose Ofukany.

[dagley]

Watt is garbage this year, and to be honest his 34 goals a last year were nothing but a fluke, the guys at best a 3rd line player and he's going to put you short handed more times then you can imagine.

[patsdude114]

do u actually think that Watt wanted to be in Red Deer, he played for a winning Vancouver all his career wins the mem cup then goes to a rebuilding Red Deer team his final year

[SectionNDeserter]

Watt will thrive on a team that has an actual transition game. Playing most of his time with a defensive forward in Sutter and a rookie in Ferraro, I think there was far too much pressure on him to carry the scoring (with the news of Starkov not returning). It is pretty tough to put up any sort of offensive numbers on a team whose defensemen are incapable of getting the puck ahead to their forwards without turning it over, icing it, or just blasting it off the boards and hoping for the best. Add to that the puck spending twice as much time in his defensive zone than it does in the oppositions more nights than not, and it is not difficult to see why he didn't put up bigger numbers. Doucet will improve Regina's penalty kill if nothing else.

[Fight Guy]

Watt's role and team definitely reflect his play this season. Glad this deal happened too. Gross is pretty good, but on the Pats, he just wasn't getting the ice time. He will do good in Red Deer I think where his ice time shoul dbe increased. And they also now have Miller. Really wish he stuck around, but we can afford to let some of our prospects go. We're pretty deep with our prospects, which is a nice change.

As for Ofukany, I think without the news of him asking for a trade, we all saw happening anyway. It was nice to see him play hard as of late...most of the time. He tends to slack a bit still, but he has definitely been playing his ass off the last few games. Against S'toon on Sunday, he played great and hard. Hard to say where he'll go though.

Can't wait to see the new players in Pats uniforms on Saturday.

[nivek_wahs]

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/news/sports/story.html?id=afa663ae-18d2-4d55-bfd9-13fbb5e52c67


Parker starts his retooling

Greg Harder, Leader-Post
Published: Wednesday, January 02, 2008

While post-Christmas bargain hunters vacuumed the last remaining crumbs off the store shelves, Regina Pats GM Brent Parker was putting his own stamp on the busiest shopping week of the year.

Parker got a jump on the Jan. 10 trade deadline by scratching two key items off his shopping list Tuesday, acquiring overage power forward J.D. Watt and 19-year-old centre Scott Doucet from the Red Deer Rebels for centre Cody Gross, 18, and forward prospect Brett Miller, 16. Regina is also sending a third-round bantam pick in 2009 to the Rebels, who gave up a fourth-rounder from the same year.

"We've certainly added some secondary scoring," Parker said of the four-player deal. "Both of them can score and they're guys who compete extremely hard. I think they make the players around them better and they make other teams pay a price because they're tough to play against. We think it's the best of both worlds for us."

The trade snuck up on Doucet, who's already slotted in as Regina's No. 2 centre.

"I have to say I was surprised," he said from Red Deer. "But once I found out I was going to a good team like Regina I was excited. I've been talking to guys who I know on Regina and they're really confident they can go a long ways. I'm just looking to chip in."

Doucet may have been caught off guard by Tuesday's news, but Watt definitely saw it coming. Regina had expressed interest in Watt as far back as last season, but Parker couldn't pry him away from the Vancouver Giants, who sent him to Red Deer in the offseason.

The Rebels currently own the worst record in the Central Division and are focused on rebuilding with young players. Therefore, trading Watt and Doucet is part of a bigger picture.

"It just makes sense from both angles," said Watt, who won a Memorial Cup with the Giants last season while leading the team in goals (34) and penalty minutes (182). "I'm excited to know I'm coming to a winning team. Obviously I know what it's like to play for a good team like that. It's going to be a huge change coming from Red Deer. I was just very happy that I'm going to a team that's got a chance to win every night."

Watt's hard-hitting style makes him one of the most-intimidating players in the league. He's not afraid to back it up by dropping the gloves, either.

"He's the prototypical power forward," said Parker, who had to give up a top prospect to get him. "It's extremely difficult, especially because of the person Brett Miller is. He's a quality young man. I said to (Rebels head coach) Brian Sutter this morning, 'You're getting a tremendous young guy and a guy who's going to be a real good player in this league.' "

Regina selected Miller in the first round (14th overall) of the 2006 bantam draft. He was among their top prospects and has been scoring at an excellent clip with the midget AAA Saskatoon Blazers.

Still, the Pats felt they could afford to give him up because of their depth on right wing with Brett Leffler (age 18), Jordan Eberle (17) and Garrett Mitchell (16) on the current roster, plus super-prospect Jordan Weal coming up.

"(Miller) is going to be a good player but you have to give something up (to get something)," added Parker. "When you can get that age balance in your lineup, it makes it a lot easier to make these kind of moves. I give a lot of credit to our scouts and the job they've done."

Parker isn't done yet.

He still has a couple other deals in the works that could fall into place now that the trade with Red Deer is in the books.

"We're still looking," he said. "We want to give ourselves a legitimate chance to take a run at it. We think we're close."

Parker said he'd still like to add another scorer to his lineup. There's also the possibility of acquiring a veteran defenceman to stabilize the back end and give the team another physical presence.

The rumour du jour has Kamloops Blazers captain Ryan Bender ending up with his home-town team. The 20-year-old Regina product is believed to have asked for a trade, expressing a strong desire to play for the Pats.

In order to accommodate Bender, Regina would have to move one of its three 20-year-olds: Watt, Troy Ofukany or Tim Kraus. Ofukany is from Kamloops.

- - -

THE PLAYERS

TO THE PATS . . .

RW J.D. WATT
Ht: 6'2; Wt: 203; Age: 20; Hometown: Cremona, AB.

Stats
Season GP G A PTS PIM
2003-04 3 1 0 1 0
2004-05 66 6 7 13 213
2005-06 58 8 29 37 199
2006-07 70 34 19 53 182
2007-08 29 7 8 15 87

Note: Watt was traded from Vancouver to Red Deer in summer of 2007.

C/RW Scott Doucet
Ht: 6'0; Wt: 200; Age: 19; Hometown: Coquitlam, B.C.

Stats
Season GP G A PTS PIM
2004-05 57 3 6 9 52
2005-06 68 8 9 17 56
2006-07 71 13 20 33 72
2007-08 40 10 9 19 61

Note: Doucet was traded from P.A. to Red Deer midway through last season.

TO THE REBELS . . .

C Cody Gross
Ht: 6'0; Wt: 177; Age: 18; Hometown: Winnipeg.

Stats
Season GP G A PTS PIM
2005-06 5 1 1 2 0
2006-07 55 6 5 11 20
2007-08 37 3 6 9 21

Note: Edmonton picked up Gross from P.A. in the 2007 expansion draft, after which he was acquired by Regina for G Tommy Tartaglione.

RW Brett Miller
Ht: 6'2; Wt: 190; Age: 16; Hometown: North Battleford.

Stats
Season GP G A PTS PIM (midget AAA Saskatoon Blazers)
2007-08 25 13 19 32 62

Note: Miller was Regina's first pick (14th overall) in the 2006 bantam draft.

© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2008

[nivek_wahs]

http://www.reginapats.com/News/98/


Parker likes what he gets with Doucet

Greg Harder, The Leader-Post
Published: Thursday, January 03, 2008

Scott Doucet comes to the Regina Pats will a solid resume and even better references.

The most-telling endorsement came from former NHL coach-of-the-year Brian Sutter, who tutored Doucet this season with the Red Deer Rebels. Their collaboration ended Tuesday when Regina acquired Doucet along with right-winger J.D. Watt.

Both players came highly recommended, but it was Doucet's work ethic and general approach to the game that really caught Sutter's eye.

"He referred to Scott as a throwback player," offered Pats GM Brent Parker. "I'm not sure you can get a better compliment than that from Brian."

Doucet has already been slotted in as Regina's No. 2 centre, perhaps forming a unit with Watt and left-winger Troy Ofukany. Regardless of the combination, Parker likes the dynamics that Doucet brings to his lineup.

"He's just an old-school guy who comes to work every day -- and he can score," the GM said. "You put him in the right situations and he can put the puck in the net. I think he's going to add a little extra pop to our lineup."

Doucet was an offensive player in bantam, but those traits have only materialized in flashes during his WHL career. He had 13 goals and 33 points in 71 games between Red Deer and Prince Albert last year, followed by 10 goals and 19 points in 40 games this season -- second on the team -- with the offensively challenged Rebels.

"I'm not too flashy but I can produce," said Doucet, who described himself as a "smart, solid, two-way player" who takes pride in his defence, work ethic and leadership.

"It's a big responsibility (being the No. 2 centre in Regina), but I feel blessed. As an older guy you have pressure to perform, but that's part of the fun. It's a team that scores lots so I'll be there to put the puck in the net as well. It's tough to say (how much) but I think I should be able to produce more in Regina."

Doucet is also a proven leader, having worn the 'C' in Red Deer earlier this season while Brandon Sutter was away at NHL camp. Doucet and Sutter split the duties for a while before the Carolina Hurricanes' first-rounder was named the full-time captain.

"I think I'm a leader," said Doucet. "I talk quite a bit in the room and try to be cheerleader on the bench. And I definitely try to play as hard as I can and be a leader on the ice as well."

The trade caught Doucet by surprise but -- after letting it sink in -- he was pleased to join a contending team. He also found it easier being traded the second time around after joining Red Deer last season from the Raiders.

"I realize change is good," said the 6-foot-0, 200-pounder. "When I got traded from P.A. to Red Deer I didn't know what to expect but it was for the better. Hopefully it'll be the same deal this time."

Doucet has been described as a playoff-style performer, even though he doesn't have much first-hand experience (seven postseason games with Red Deer and four with P.A.).

If the Pats have their way, Doucet will add several more notches to his belt before this season is over.

"Definitely, that's half the fun, being challenged," he said of playing for the East Division leaders. "When every team comes in and they're going to play their best against you, that feels good. Come playoff time, I've only been there a couple times but I know it's the best part about hockey. I'm definitely ready for that kind of year."

[nivek_wahs]

http://www.reginapats.com/News/96/


Watt's addition adds spark to Pats

Greg Harder, Leader-Post
Published: Thursday, January 03, 2008

With the Jan. 10 trade deadline looming, Regina Pats GM Brent Parker set out to give his lineup a power surge.

All it took was a Watt.

"You need guys who have been through it and know what it takes to win," said Parker, who acquired J.D. Watt in a four-player deal with the Red Deer Rebels on Tuesday. "You have to have skill, there's no question about that, but you still have to have that physical element. At playoff time, it's still won in the trenches. We felt we could use some more of that."

Parker's search for a reputed double threat led him to the Rebels, who parted with Watt, veteran centre Scott Doucet and a fourth-round bantam pick in 2009. Regina gave up centre Cody Gross, forward prospect Brett Miller and a third-rounder in 2009.

The biggest name in the deal is Watt, a former Vancouver Giants' standout whose 30-goal credentials don't even represent the best part of his game. The 20-year-old right winger is also one of the most-feared power forwards in the WHL.

"That's my whole game," offered Watt, who led the Giants in goals (34) and penalty minutes (182) last season.

"When we won a Memorial Cup in Vancouver the reason we won is not because we had the best players but because the players we had did their jobs. Even though I led the team in goals, I was still a third-line guy and my job was to go out there and create energy and come up with the odd goal. That's the reason I was drafted and signed (by the Calgary Flames), not because I'm an offensive guy necessarily but because I'm a physical power forward. I can never lose that part of my game."

Knowing Watt's unique attributes, the Pats talked to Vancouver about him last season and again in the summer, but couldn't strike a deal. The Flames' fourth-rounder helped Vancouver win the 2007 Memorial Cup before he was shipped to Red Deer in the offseason.

It ended up being a short stay for Watt, who didn't fit into the long-term rebuilding strategy of the last-place Rebels.

"It was a really disappointing first half of the season for me, not necessarily just because the team did bad but because you set expectations for yourself," noted Watt, who had seven goals and 15 points in 29 games. "The way to have individual success is to first of all have team success. We didn't really have team success and as a result lots of our guys in Red Deer haven't done what they've wanted to do."

Watt shared their frustration.

"That's one of the reasons why I'm really looking forward to the fresh start in Regina on a good hockey team that can go into every game knowing we can win," he continued. "I'm a player who's a little more successful under a stricter system and I believe that coach (Curtis) Hunt has a strict system in Regina, from what I can see. If I can fit into that and produce offensively a little more than I have in Red Deer, that would be nice and that's what I want to do. I feel I should do that."

Watt and Doucet, who drove into town Wednesday, are slated to make their Pats' debuts on Saturday night against the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes.

Watt already likes what he has seen from afar, including the work of captain Logan Pyett with Team Canada at the world juniors. The newcomer is also looking forward to a reunion with former Giants teammate Tim Kraus, as well as goaltender Linden Rowat, who's from Cochrane, Alta., near Watt's hometown of Cremona.

"He's a very solid goaltender and something that every championship team needs is a good goalie," said Watt, who helped Red Deer upset Rowat's Pats twice earlier this season. "I've always known Regina was interested in me so obviously when we were playing them I was really looking to see what kind of team they had. They always came up a little short against us, just a couple bad games, but it's easy to see they have a real good team, lots of talent and a very good back end. It looks to me like a team that really can take a run at a Memorial Cup. I'm looking forward to being a part of that."

[nivek_wahs]

http://www.reginapats.com/News/97/


Parker using up his minutes

Greg Harder, The Leader-Post
Published: Thursday, January 03, 2008

Regina Pats GM Brent Parker has declared an early winner in the WHL trade sweepstakes.

"The people who are the most excited at this time of year are the phone companies," quipped Parker. "They're the ones making all the money."

The Pats stand to benefit as well. With the Jan. 10 trade deadline looming, Parker made a pre-emptive strike Tuesday by acquiring overage power forward J.D. Watt, veteran centre Scott Doucet and a fourth-round bantam pick in 2009 from the Red Deer Rebels for centre Cody Gross, prospect Brett Miller and a third-rounder in 2009.

Parker isn't finished, either. Still in the market for another scorer and a stay-at-home defenceman, the Pats' GM is positioning himself to swing at least one and perhaps two more deals before next Thursday's deadline.

That's not to say it's a slam dunk.

In fact, Parker -- once dubbed Trader Brent for his deal-making prowess -- said it's getting more and more difficult to orchestrate meaningful player swaps because the talent is spread so thin among 22 teams.

"The prices are high," said Parker. "There's a lot of teams that feel they're still in the mix so there are very few teams that are selling. Supply and demand. We're not going to fill one hole and create another so you have to find the right match. That's the hardest part, trying to find that right match because there's not a lot of teams that are selling guys."

One of the biggest names on the market is Prince George Cougars defenceman Ty Wishart, chosen 16th overall in the 2006 NHL entry draft by the San Jose Sharks. The starting point for bids on Wishart is believed to be a first-round bantam pick, which the Cougars lost last season when they acquired Devin Setoguchi from the Saskatoon Blades.

It has been suggested that a trade involving Wishart will help free up other deals around the league. Contending teams like the Pats, Spokane Chiefs, Calgary Hitmen and perhaps the Vancouver Giants are all believed to be interested in improving their lineups for a run at the WHL crown.

- - -

The rumour mill has linked the Pats to Kamloops Blazers captain Ryan Bender, but he's doing his best to throw water on the fire.

The stay-at-home defenceman told the Kamloops Daily News on Tuesday that he has heard the speculation that he'll end up with his home-town Pats, but the 20-year-old Regina product denied asking for a trade -- sort of.

"I'm more worried about winning hockey games than asking for a trade," said Bender, a 6-foot-2, 215-pounder who has two assists and 114 penalty minutes in 38 games this season. "There's been a lot of rumours and speculation and stuff but ... No, I haven't ... there hasn't been anything. Just rumours and speculation ..."

The speculation also suggests that Bender isn't the only player who might want out of Kamloops, an organization in flux -- or is it disarray? -- following an ownership change and the subsequent firing of head coach/GM Dean Clark.

The Blazers hired interim bench boss Greg Hawgood, who has no coaching experience, but didn't bring in a general manager, although Brian Fortin was promoted to interim GM on Wednesday.

All signs point towards an interesting trade deadline in Kamloops.

- - -

Craig Schira is getting down-right offensive in Vancouver.

The former Pats defenceman took a career-high seven-game point streak (five goals and 11 points) into Wednesday's game against the Kelowna Rockets.

"I'm really trying to stay in the present and not give it too much thought," he told the Vancouver Sun. "This is the most fun I've had in hockey by far, so I just want to make sure I enjoy every day."

The Giants acquired Schira and Mike Reich early this season for Tim Kraus and Juraj Valach. The change has been good for Schira, who had 26 points with Regina last season, down from 33 the year before.

"Last season was rough," he said. "I wasn't playing my best -- it was a tough year for me. If there was one thing I learned, it was not to get too low or you'll never get out of your rut."

He's out of it now. Schira has seven goals (a career high) and 21 points in 30 games since joining the Giants.

"Craig's been very good for us," said head coach Don Hay. "I don't think we expected the offence he has provided, to be completely honest. He's got good offensive instincts, jumps in and out of the play at the right time and doesn't get caught or make mistakes."